Perry moves closer

As it increasingly appears likely the Texas governor will launch a White House bid, Perry’s ramp-up has become eerily reminiscent of the front porch strategy then-Gov. George W. Bush employed in 1999 at the governor’s mansion ahead of his own presidential run – but at an accelerated pace.

This week alone, Perry is meeting in the Texas capital with a group of elected officials from Arkansas, then with another later in the week from Tennessee and Georgia. He’s also hosting a group of national donors. Next week, he’s set to sit down with a different set of bundlers.

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“So many people want to do these, we’ve had to add additional dates,” said Dave Carney, Perry’s top strategist.

The governor already had some GOP national security officials down to Austin for a briefing and attended a dinner with a group of major Texas and out-of-state contributors.

“I got the feeling that there are a lot of people who are doing what we did – which is telling him he ought to do this,” said Arkansas state Rep. David Sanders, who along with three other Arkansas Republicans including Lt. Gov. Mark Darr met for about 45 minutes with Perry Monday in Austin.

There are also, Martin notes, the frames of a campaign coming together as Carney talks with top operatives and strategists in early states, including New Hampshire, his own home base.

It's possible, but very hard to see, Perry deciding not to run at this point. Yet even if he did, he has already managed to dominate a race he hasn't entered, underscoring once again a sense of resignation some Republicans have about Mitt Romney as frontrunner.